Discovering Emancipated Autism

8/16/2019 Discovering Emancipated Autism

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Introduction | Defining Autism | Social Model of Disability | Meditation | Curing Autism

This book is being gradually revised. My clumsy

writing, later in the book , makes it difficult to

read. I. A Personal Introduction

O Glory of the All-Glorious

I was born in 1956 and entered the Baháʾí Faith in 1970.

From that point on, it would take me forty more years to

become a lover. Everything, without exception, which I, as an

Autist, had experienced to that date, the moment my heart

opened in 2010, had, I now recognize, been merely the

groundwork, an illusion, and a shadow. As analogies, by

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changing my mental wiring, perhaps just flipping on a switch,

the change was instantaneous. All the praises, of course, go

to God. I can take no credit. I also believe, and feel, that souls

I have known, now in the hereafter, especially my father, were

interceding for me.

I have experienced my own (Arabic

1

, al-

Tawāḥ

ud) as a lack

of certain common human attributes, including empathy and

other social skills, and, as compensations, acquiring an

overabundance, sometimes an immoderate amount, of other

attributes. In coping with my Autism, my relations with others

were often on a rational level. Throughout my life, I have

dedicated myself to daily rituals and routines and to a

sequence of

special interests

, which may be misinterpreted

by some Autists as addictions, one of which led to my Ph.D.

work in the sociology of religion. In measure, any one of these

attributes could be useful, but, presumably due to my Autism,

they were rarely balanced properly.

On August 25, 2013, someone accused all religions, on a

message board, of practicing

“

love-bombing.

”

The following

was my response:

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You are being factually incorrect. Speaking as a sociologist ofreligion (my profession), love-bombing was a practice sometimesused by the Unification Church (now the Family Federation forWorld Peace and Unification) and the Children of God (nowFamily International). You are making a hasty generalization (alogical fallacy), based upon two dwindling movements, to all thereligions of the world. What I have noticed over the years is thatsome Autists do not understand “love” (though I am notreferring to you personally). Therefore, they confuse genuinelove and concern with deception.

When I say that I am an

Autist

, which I do frequently, people

will often ask me to define the word. This work will, more so

than the previous ones, largely be reflective. My first thought,

even though I have rarely expressed it, is, “Autism is me.”

Similar feelings are shared by many of us. Autism is,

intimately, my Autism and one of the multiple dimensions of

my individuality. I am an Autist, but I also have Autism. It is a

category, or a name, for some of my neurological attributes.

Due to the vast expansion of the Internet, Autism has also

developed into a culture.

Autists of my generation belong to the history of Autism. Only

yesterday, Autism and schizophrenia were thought to be

inseparable. Before Autism became a distinct diagnosis in

1980, Autists were placed on the schizophrenic spectrum. My


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own diagnosis, using the first edition of the American

Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of

Mental Disorders

(1952), was

“

schizophrenic reaction,

childhood type.

”

Although My parents were given my

diagnosis when I was around six years old, no one told me.

Perhaps the silence was common in that era, but I had to

literally, and successfully, demand to know. I screamed

repeatedly,

“

Am I a schizophrenic?,

”

when I was around

twelve or so.

Some Autists can make sounds in their mouths, but they are

unable to verbally communicate. A close Autistic friend of

mine only “grunted,” as she put it, until the age of six. I began

speaking, I am told, at the usual age, but I would frequently

have difficulty expressing myself. For instance, my thoughts

might not connect with the proper vocabulary. Then, no

matter how hard I tried, I sounded cold and annoyed. Into my

early teens, my stuttering was so bad, outside of home, that I

could barely hold a conversation. Until 2011, the unempathic

wordiness of my writing, often intentional, made it almost

unreadable.

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Fortunately, I figured out, on my own, a particular

“

technique

”

to address and to manage the stuttering problem. Briefly, I

deliberately, or intentionally, began to focus upon each and

every word that I said. At the beginning, I would often slip up.

Gradually, however, this once conscious method has become

a habit or, in effect, one of my routines. I rarely need to think

about it anymore. Looking back, the issue became especially

important to me after I began lecturing as a professor. In my

work, I teach, a bit like chanting mantrās, the same classes

over and over again. I

love

the monotony and routine.

Since, as an Autistic man, I have never been a man-about-

time, I was obliged to closely study people and the rules, or

reasoning, they follow. In my religious life, I was, by a turn of

phrase, rationally spiritual. My approach to matters of spirit

was most always ruled and disciplined. Admittedly, the field of

sociology appealed to me, in part, because it, like my earlier

interests in theatrical acting, made me a more careful student.

Approaching others as a student not only encourages

humility. It may limit suggestibility and the tendency to

negatively “react” to the statements and behaviors of others.

The chances of being caught off-guard can be reduced.


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Understanding human rules, or

“

social norms

”

as we call them

in sociology, has, in my own case, picked up the slack, at

least to some degree, for a scarcity of empathy. Even so,

during the first fifty-four years of my life, experiencing the

heart-centered sensation of empathy always appeared

beyond my grasp. Like many other Autists, I also disliked

being hugged, kissed, and touched, especially on the head. A

chiropractor once told me that he had never worked on a

body as stiff and as rigid as my own.

Thankfully, my ability to study human behavior has been

reasonably good. Not all Autists have been blessed in this

way. My capacity to pay attention to others seems to have

been joined with skills I acquired as a sociologist. Eventually,

through close observation, I learned a certain number of

relatively automatic

“

tricks.

”

By playing them, I could publicly

perform as an empathetic and caring person. Remarkably, I

was fairly successful at it, too. Yet, rarely, perhaps never, did I

actually feel that way. Although I do not blame myself, I was,

emotionally, a fraud. I could not even mourn my own parents

’

deaths.


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Mindfulness, as I have just described it, came relatively easily

to me. It was, simply put, my path of least resistance. Indeed,

I have been mindful, to one extent or another, throughout

most of my life. No effort and no study of any formal

techniques, whether from a book or from a teacher, were ever

necessary. Mindfulness meditation was simply my way of

dealing with the world. Long before I ever heard the word, I

was mindful. This fact of my

“

unintentional

”

mindfulness only

occurred to me, however, as I was writing this paper. I never

defined myself in those terms before.

To say the very least, it became painfully apparent to me,

over the course of my life, that heartfulness was what I

actually needed. From my readings and informal

observations, I have noticed that Buddhist practices of

mindfulness appear to be somewhat common in the Autistic

community. These disciplines involve an ongoing awareness,

even an analysis, of one

’

s body and physical environment.

Instead of Buddhist compassion or rational sympathy

(imagining how others feel), Autists may require heartfulness

or empathy (actually feeling). Among many Autists, logical

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thinking, sometimes resulting in

“

mechanical

”

behavior, can

function as social adjustment to a lack of empathy.

... he [the Tin Woodman] walked very carefully, with his eyeson the road, and when he saw a tiny ant toiling by he would stepover it, so as not to harm it. The Tin Woodman knew very wellhe had no heart, and therefore he took great care never to be

cruel or unkind to anything. “You people with hearts,” he said,“have something to guide you, and need never do wrong; but Ihave no heart, and so I must be very careful.”L. Frank Baum, The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

My heart-based meditations have been transformative. The

sentiments stirred by Heartfulness Inquiry have reminded me

of two fictional characters: After the Tin Woodman was finally

given a heart, one “made entirely of silk and stuffed with

sawdust,

”

he discovered the feelings which he had actually

possessed all along. Even more relevant to my own

experiences, Data, the android on

Star Trek: The Next

Generation, initially found his “emotion chip” to be intolerable.

Since he could not, based on his programming, logically

control his newly acquired passions, he wanted the chip

removed.

Similarly, in order to avoid being overwhelmed, particularly by

emotional empathy, I have attempted, during my meditations,

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to keep my attention on drawing closer to God. Gradually, the

ritualized repetitions, often observed in Autistic behavior,

have, as remembrance, become centered in my heart. While

my tendencies to over-analyze are being redirected to a

deepening tranquility, I am more open to my own insights and

feelings and, especially, to the sufferings of others. In 2011, a

close relative was stunned when I, without thinking about it,

said that I loved her. I had, apparently, never spoken those

words.

A kind, but anonymous, woman

2

told me, many years ago,

that the very thing I least wanted, I might need the most. At

the time, I resented her advice. It was unrequested, and I

thought she was simply a bully. (Being an Autist, I have

known many of them.) However, it is only since beginning my

devotional meditations, becoming wholly entranced with the

pure soul of my dear guardian angel, the magnificent

Ḥ

a

ḍ

rat

Sul

ṭān Bāhū

, and being

completely

surprised at the

unexpected life changes, that I can understand, and

appreciate, her wisdom. I am not on yet another meditative “

head trip.

”

My heart is truly being healed.

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These next few paragraphs might seem out of place, but I feel

compelled to write them. After my heart was opened, through

Bāhū, I have been learning to trust my inner guidance on

these issues. After an unusual turn of events, I was

diagnosed, or rediagnosed, as an Autistic shortly after my

mother

’

s death. In two years, my father received the same

diagnosis. At first, I felt bad at not having that information

while she was still in this world. So much now made sense.

However, I later had a strong intuition that my mother’s

prayers, from the next world, led to both diagnoses. I will just

need to wait a brief time to discuss them with her.

My father once shared his sadness with me about the passing

of his wife or my mother. I asked him to

“

trust

”

me that there

was a life beyond, and that the two of them would be reunited.

He died a year or two after that conversation. Within months,

my newfound passion for studying Ṣūfism inspired me,

seemingly out of curiosity, to try a simple word meditation. It

developed into

Heartfulness Inquiry

™

. Since then, my love for

my father has been increasing. I actually perceive him as a

pure spirit with a warm, soft smile. My father’s intercession, I

strongly feel, is responsible for my renewed heart.

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My parents died physically, but they live with me. While they

were still alive in this world, I would need to call them on the

phone or fly into the New York City area in order to remain in

contact. Obviously, I could pray for both of them. If my heart

were in a different place back then, I might have even

inwardly communed with their human souls. Whether they

would have been aware of it, I have no way of knowing. Now,

the story is different. My mother and father are around me.

They are closely connected with my spiritual heart. I look

forward to this relationship intensifying when I pass over to

the other side.

Over these many years, I have adapted to Autism. It belongs

to my inherited character. For someone to take

my

Autism

away from me now would rob me of an important dimension

of my individuality, especially my dogged determinism and

way of thinking. I would, in effect, become a stranger to

myself. Today, I love being an Autist. That is why, in my

opinion, any cure should take place either before birth

(prenatally) or very soon afterwards. My own willingness to

adopt the anti-cure philosophy for a few years was, I think, the


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result of this basic self-realization: Not being an Autist is

unimaginable to me.

Psychiatry and abnormal psychology are relatively new fields.

In many traditional societies, children and adults with

cognitive or behavioral differences were not treated as

patients of clinical practitioners. Before the rise of the pro-

eugenics (sterilizing patients), yet comparatively humane,

mental (or social) hygiene movement, which gave birth to

psychiatry and abnormal psychology, conditions like Autism

would, indeed, have been literally treated as cases of

demonic possession. In some hospitals, holes were drilled in

heads to discharge evil spirits. Although I was, fortunately,

spared an exorcism, the electrical convulsive therapies I

received were, metaphorically or poetically, close.

According to Dr. D.K. Shute, Benjamin Rush (1746-1813),

one of the signatories to the

Declaration of Independence

,

began reforming the treatment of “the insane”:

It will do no harm to recall the fact that an American,Benjamin Rush [1746-1813], started [a] ... reform in treating the

insane, not as demon-possessed individuals who should bechained and locked in cells, but people, simply, who had adisease of the brain.

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Dr. D.K. Shute, “American Medico-Psychological Association:Proceedings of the Sixty-third Annual Meeting.” May 5, 1907.The American Journal of Insanity. Volume LXIV. Baltimore,MD: The Johns Hopkins Press. 1907-1908. Page 162.

From 1918-1980, Autists were

“

officially

”

placed on the

schizophrenic spectrum. Sadly, the memory that single

historical fact, lifted from the long and thorny path of Autism

diagnosis in the Western world, is being all too rapidly lost.

Autists

must

not forget. When I have raised the issue on

Autistic online message boards, I have been often accused of

fabricating the idea. For instance, someone responded that

Autism, unlike schizophrenia, is not a psychosis which is, of

course, beside the point. Fortunately, many Autists of my

generation are still alive to remember. We will not, however,

be around forever.

The American Psychiatric Association (1921) was founded in

Philadelphia as the

Association of Medical Superintendents of

the American Institutions for the Insane (1844). It was later

renamed the

American Medico-Psychological Association

(1892). The organization published a diagnosic manual in ten

editions between 1918 and 1942. Its title changed,

chronologically, as follows: Statistical Manual for the Use of

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Institutions for the Insane (1918), Statistical Manual for the

Use of Institutions for Mental Diseases (1920), Statistical

Manual for the Use of Institutions for Mental Defectives

(1934), and

Statistical Manual for the Use of Hospitals for

Mental Diseases (1942).

The 1918 release of the first edition, Statistical Manual for the

Use of Institutions for the Insane

, was announced on page

288 of

The American Journal of Insanity

(later changed to

The

American Journal of Psychiatry

) and is included in this

volume. According to that first edition, Autism is a

characteristic of

dementia praecox

New Latin, dēmentia

praecox, madness premature), the original term for

schizophrenia:

15. Dementia PraecoxThis group cannot be satisfactorily defined at the present time

as there as there are still too many points at issue as to whatconstitute the essential clinical features of dementia praecox....

... The term “schizophrenia” is now used by many writersinstead of dementia praecox....

Appearance of autistic thinking and dream-like ideas, peculiarfeelings of being forced, of interference with the mind, ofphysical or mystical influences, but with retention of clearnessin other fields (orientation, memory, etc.).Committee on Statistics of the American Medico-Psychological

Association (now the American Psychiatric Association) in

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regarded as a reaction to living with a refrigerator

mother.

2.

In the DSM-II (1968), two out of the three

designations changed slightly: schizophrenia,

childhood type

(my own diagnosis),

schizophrenia, paranoid type, and schizoid

personality

.

3.

The DSM-III (1980) represented a sea change

in diagnosis. The old psychodynamic model was

giving weigh to newer behavior approaches.

Using ththis manual, my guess is that I would

have had childhood onset pervasive

developmental disorder

.

Schizoid disorder of

childhood or adolescence, which was not

regarded as a category of Autism, is also, I

suppose, a possibility. However, I was not

diagnosed with schizoid personality under the

DSM-I and DSM-II. Infantile autism appears a bit

too extreme.

4.

Based upon the DSM-III-R (1984), my

diagnosis might have been either autistic disorder


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or pervasive developmental disorder not

otherwise specified (PDDNOS). The DSM-III-R

eliminated schizoid disorder of childhood or

adolescence. Its symptoms were reinterpreted as

indistinguishable from a pervasive developmental

disorder. Since singling out a pervasive

developmental disorder based upon age of onset

was determined to be invalid, childhood onset

pervasive developmental disorder was merged

with infantile autism, also from the DSM-III, to

create autistic disorder in the DSM-III-R.

5.

The DSM-IV (1994) and, subsequently, the

DSM-IV-TR (2000), continued using autistic

disorder and divided PDDNOS into multiple types,

including Asperger

’

s disorder and the new PDD-

NOS (pervasive developmental disorder not

otherwise specified). I was diagnosed by my new

psychiatrist with either Asperger’s disorder” or “

Autistic disorder.

”

For highly functional adults, he

regarded those two categories as functionally

identical. As things turned out, in the DSM-5, the


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American Psychiatric Association ended up

agreeing with him. In the ICD-10 (from the World

Health Organization),

Schizoid disorder of

childhood

is used as an alternate, or outdated,

term for Asperger’s syndrome.

6. Finally, autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is the

new classification used in the DSM-5 (2013). That

term, with its three levels (1, 2, and 3), has

replaced all of the previous types of Autism, as

well as pervasive developmental disorder.

Presumably, I was at level 2 as a child. For the

first time, with the DSM-5, developmental criteria

can be considered when diagnosing an Autistic

adult. The DSM-5 authors also recommended that

anyone with a prior diagnosis of autistic disorder,

Asperger’s disorder, and PDD-NOS now be given

a diagnosis of ASD. Now, at last, there is just one

ASD. Having lived through the whole drama, I am,

I must admit, pretty happy about it.

My comments are obviously not intended to demean those

who are legitimately schizophrenic. However, even though I


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recognized, a long time ago, that I was obviously not

delusional, learning that I was, diagnostically, an Autistic, not

a schizophrenic, made me sigh with relief. Since the

“

Asperger

’

s Disorder

”

construct did not appear in the literature

until long after my original diagnosis, rejecting it was not a big

deal. I also did not care to be identified with people who

believed that, somehow, “Aspies” (Asperger-types) were

superior to

“

Auties

”

(Autistics). For individuals whose original

diagnosis was Asperger’s Disorder, the transition may be

more difficult.

Of course, many non-speaking Autists with normal or high

intelligence were, for many years, diagnosed with an

intellectual disability (previously called mental retardation):

It is true that autism does appear more frequently in themental retarded population, but the converse is not true.Autistic children do not generally have diminished cognitivefunctioning. They have normal, even above normalintelligence....

Often, a child that is labeled as autistic is unable to

communicate with the outside world, using language. Theycannot process the world in terms of letters and sounds; they domake their wishes known, however to their caregivers, often innonverbal ways. They score normally or above normally onstandardized intelligence tests.... Times have definitely changed

in the educational system, an autistic child; even as long ago as


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10 years ago [from 2012], often was labeled as retarded, becausethere was a shortage of empirical data on how to classify thesechildren; or how to teach them for that matter.“Autism vs Mental Retardation. AutismSD.com. Blog. August27, 2012. Retrieved on July 13, 2013.

I doubt that I am an Autistic savant. However, I found a

reference to “damage to the left brain.” My repeated EEGs

(electroencephalograms) have shown abnormalities,

indicating a seizure disorder, in my left frontal lobes:

Dmitri Mendeleev, a Russian chemist, wrestled with the

problem until one night: “I saw in a dream a table where all the

elements fell into places as required. Awakening I immediatelywrote it down on a piece of paper. Only in one place did acorrection later seem necessary.” The resulting table was soaccurate that the properties of unknown elements werecorrectly predicted. Mendeleev’s dream is reminiscent of the

autistic savants who just see the answer to a mathematicequation rather than work through the calculations. Notsurprisingly, autistic savants have brain activity that sharescharacteristics with dreaming....

Autistic savants are a prime example of people who obtaininformation through heightened perception rather than the

usual analytical channels....Functional MRI studies of autistic individuals and IQ-matched

controls are consistent with the proposed shifts in dominance.When both groups were given identical memory and attentiontasks they performed at equal levels, but used different sections

of their brains. The controls activated several areas of their leftand right neocortices in an integrated fashion, whereas the

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autistic subjects preferentially activated a small portion of theirright neocoztex or both sides of their visual cortex. This fits withthe evidence of damage to the left brain in autism, and also withhow Grandin describes her thought process as primarilyvisual....

... Dreaming,meditating, synesthesia, astral projection, and theminds of autistic savants are all conditions or states ofconsciousness in which psychic abilities can be enhanced; allshow a shift away from the usual dominance of brain activity inthe left hemisphere and from the cortex to the limbic system.Diane Hennacy Powell, M.D., The ESP Enigma. New York:

Walker & Company. 2009. Kindle Edition.One of the things that Autistic savants have taught us is – justthink about what Autism is and why an Autistic savant can dowhat they can do. What they do is they see the world without theencumbrance of the parf of the brain that is evolutionarily thenewest. That part of the brain is usually compromised. And, as a

result, they see information as much more raw data. In otherwords, it’s more like they see the code, and we see the icons on

our iPad. And so, we’re [non-Autists] missing a lot ofinformation that they [Autists] see. And it’s part of what makeslife so challenging for them – because they’re so sensitive. Theyget over-stimulated extremely easily. It’s like they’re seeing theorder of the universe. They’re actually seeing it – or they’reexperiencing it in some way – and, I’m using the word “seeing,”but it can come to any sense.... And it’s because they don’t thinkconceptually.

See, when you have an Autistic savant that is artistic, whatthey do is they’re drawing three-dimensional objects – three-

dimensional beings – horses gallopping when they’re three yearsold, when other children are drawing stick figures. They’reactually drawing what they see; whereas drawing the stick-likefigure is a more conceptual way of drawing. It’s not drawing


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what you actually see. That’s that whole drawing through theright side of your brain kind of thing.... They have such anundistorted perception of certain things.... They have this abilityto detect order in ways that we (Non-Autists) can’t pick it up....Many of them [Autists] can [do telepathy] – absolutely. Theycan do telepathy, precognition – they can.... A lot of them canlead fairly normal lives....

There’s something called the acquired savant syndrome. Andusually what has happened is that there has been an injury tothe left temporal lobe.... If it [a particular injury] starts in the

temporal lobe first, they you’ll start to see the savant syndrome.

And what’s happening is that this most recently evolved part ofour brain ... – that’s what gets in the way of certain abilities.And a lot of savant abilities are right-brain abilities – things likeart and music [and] intuition....

One of things that’s fascinating is that they [Autistic savants]can have knowledge without knowing.... This kid [an Autistic

savant] actually drew a periodic table [of elements], and put inall of the elements where they belonged, and their atomic

weights. And he even put in ... the initials for the elements. ....But he had never see one [a periodic table of elements]. So,maybe that is remote viewing.... Where is that information

stored? That’s what fascinates me.... It’s as though their brainsare almost like that [a smartphone app] sometimes.... Stephen

Wiltshire [a British Autistic savant] couldn’t communicate verywell at all. For a lot of the ones [Autistic savants] who become,their artwork becomes a form of communication for them – the

same thing for the music.... Most of them [Autistic savants] aremen.... Savantism is found more often in Autism than it is in any

other kind of disability. If you’r Autistic, the odds of you being asavant are about 10%. The difference between a savant an agenius is that a savant has abilities that would be considered agenius if they otherwise had everything else [were not disabled].

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Diane Hennacy Powell, M.D., “Savants & PSI Phenomena.”Coast to Coast AM . George Noory, host. March 26, 2013.Retrieved on March 27, 2012.

II. Defining AutismBased upon my own views and personal experiences, Autism

can, on balance, be seen as a difference of the heart or as

spiritual heart disease. As a result of our uncommon brains,

many of us, in our daily interactions with others, have trouble

with affection or empathy. Although people, whether they are

on or off the Autism spectrum, may be out of touch with their

hearts, for Autists, this condition is devastating. Likewise, the

self-discovery of an Autist’s heart can be revolutionary. One

could go through life, I discovered, experiencing emotion,

without having a heart. For a lifetime of inner oppression, I

have cried many times.

Within the Autistic community, there has been a longstanding

debate on “person-first” versus “Autist-first” language. In

person-first language, the individual has Autism. With Autist-

first language, the individual

is

an Autist. The supporters of

person-first language argue against labeling the individual

as the disability. Advocates of Autist-first language, pointing

to such unquestioned terms as

“

right-handed person,

”

assert

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that objections to Autist-first language are, in fact, objections

to Autism. In my opinion, both of these descriptions are valid:

I

am

an Autist because I

have

Autism or Autistic attributes.

From my observations, the rejection of person-first language

is usually based upon the assumption that Autism is a real

thing. Autism, according to that view, would be a single “

essence,

”

a universal core of being, which appears in every

Autist. In academic terms, this approach, as mentioned

earlier, is called,

essentialism

. To my understanding, we can

know that essences, like “God” and “humanity,” exist, since

they are referred to in the Baháʾí Texts. We then accept these

essences both on faith and by observing their attributes.

Autism, however, is a

“

triad of impairments,

”

not, as I see it,

an essence:

difficulties in social interaction

difficulties in communication

restricted interests and repetitive behavior

Dividing Autists into separate types, such as classic Autism

and Asperger

’

s Syndrome (Asperger

’

s Disorder in the United


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States), has been used by some individuals with Asperger

’

s

Syndrome, or “aspies,” to distinguish themselves from other

Autists. Thank God, the label, Asperger

’

s Syndrome, will,

most likely, be officially eliminated from the new diagnostic

manuals. According to the proposal, Asperger’s Syndrome

will become

Autism Spectrum Disorder, Level 1

(perhaps

ASD 1 or Autism 1). The psychiatric community has

recognized that we are all Autists, and that the similarities

between us outweigh any differences.

Return to the table of contents.

III. The Social Model of Disability

I will preface this chapter with a brief explanation. Those of us

who have been particularly blessed to obtain doctoral

degrees, such as Ph.D.s, are trained to be unusual. Since

most Autists are unusual anyway, there is little surprise that

many of us would receive higher educations. To most people,

faithfulness to a particular way of looking at the world is seen

as a virtue. In the academic world, the opposite is true. We

academics or professors place a high value on regularly and

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carefully questioning our current assumptions. The thoughts I

will express here are a result of this process of inquiry.

Autism has become political hardball. Most of the individuals

involved may be well-intentioned, but there has been little

unity and cooperation between the various factions. Some

organizations are operated by parents, without any Autists,

and promote nonscientific

“

cures

”

for Autism. Others are run

only by Autists and, while advocating for support, oppose

cures at all. Then there are minority views. Many

transhumanists, for instance, believe that Autism, especially

Asperger

’

s Autism (Autism Spectrum Disorder Level 1),

should be taken as a model for the generalized improvement

of the human species.

In 2007, I accepted, though with lingering doubt, that while

Autists, much like anyone else, should be assisted when

needed,

curing

Autism, to make us more like neurotypicals

(neurologically typical people), would be oppressive. “Unity in

Neurodiversity

”

(neurological diversity) became the motto for

The Emancipated Autism Project. These days, however, if

someone asked me whether I accepted neurodiversity, I


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would respond,

“

Neurodiversity is a fact, not a belief system.

Because each of us is neurologically different, no human

category with similar neurological attributes should be

oppressed.

”

Neurodiversity, therefore, is a given. Objectively, any form of

diversity, including neurodiversity, is the human condition.

Each of us is like a divinely created snowflake. The attributes

or qualities of the unity of humanity, the human essence, are

individualized

. Even clones are not really clones. Although the

diversity in all the conditions of existence should, of course,

be enjoyed and appreciated, over-emphasizing diversity will

inevitably lead to separation, strife, and alienation. In other

words, without a recognition of universal human unity, a focus

upon diversity is like watching a pretty slide show.

Raising capacity among these protagonists [the individual, theinstitutions of society, and the community] will require athorough reexamination of assumptions about human nature.Notions of “us” and “them” deserve particular attention.

Discourse in development circles, for example, is often rooted innotions of the “empowered” members of society assisting the“disadvantaged” or “marginalized.” The impulse to rectifysocial inequalities is unquestionably noble, but us/them

dichotomies only perpetuate and reinforce existing divisions.Careful thought needs to be given to ways in which


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empowerment can be approached as a universal and sharedenterprise and not something the “haves” bestow on the “havenots.” Baháí International Community (United Nations Office), Empowerment as a Mechanism for Social Transformation. November 15, 2012. Retrieved on March 17, 2013.

I talked myself into neurodiversity. With the traumas of my

childhood nagging at, and reminding, me, I was never a true

believer. When Heartfulness Inquiry first opened my heart,

and extended moments of empathy were regular events in my

life, one of my first thoughts was: Perhaps now, some others

may also become empathic Autists. It dawned on me

sometime later that social challenges, which are frequently

interpreted as difficulties experiencing empathy, are a major

defining feature of Autism spectrum disorders. My original

conclusion did not make sense, and I had to be honest about

it.

Jumping onto the

“

anti-cure

”

bandwagon appealed to me as a

sociologist, but this decision, I now believe, was made in

haste. ADHDers (individuals with attention deficit hyperactivity

disorder) are, like Autists, an oppressed minority. Yet, to my

knowledge, there is no ADHD anti-cure movement. I

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swallowed the common assumption, in the mainstream

Autistic activist community, that Autism should be seen or

even privileged as a dimension of neurodiversity, until I

became more in touch with my heart. Seeing no other

options, in August, 2011, I rejected the view that Autism

should not, even partially, be cured.

Buying into neurodiversity divided me in two. My Autism

comes through my father, and my OCD (obsessive

compulsive disorder) is from my mother. Both my mother and

I obsessed on noises (misophonia), but differently. Oddly, this

similarity never occurred to me until after her death. Although

the OCD gave my mother insomnia, noise obsessions

traumatized me throughout the day. In my own mind,

believing in neurodiversity forced me to accept a cure for my

mother

’

s attributes in me but to reject one for those from my

father. Autists, however, often have noise sensitivities, so my

OCD is an extension of my Autism.

Identity politics is rooted in various Marxist perspectives,

especially critical social theory. The focus of many of these

critical perspectives is upon conscious raising or

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conscientization, which is the process of developing an

awareness of oppression. The idea originated with Brazilian

educator Paulo Freire

’

s critical pedagogy. After recognizing

oppression, people join together with others facing similar

problems. Together, they struggle for freedom. Therefore, in

identity politics, there is some unity, but it is limited in scope,

not universal. Inevitably, people will divide into camps of “us”

versus

“

them.

”

The Autistic identity politics of the neurodiversity movement

were inspired by the Deaf community’s position on cochlear

implants. Deaf individuals frequently grow up around one

another, attend the same schools, and so forth. To many Deaf

individuals, these implants are an attack on Deaf community

and culture. Both would be wiped out by eliminating

Deafness. Since the mainstream Autistic movement defines,

in a similar way, Autism as a culture, curing Autism is often

described as genocide. The Emancipated Autism Project,

however, supports the unity of all humanity, not the divisions

of identity politics.

http://www.markfoster.net/struc/pedagogyoftheoppressed-chapters_1-3.pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/pedagogyoftheoppressed-chapters_1-3.pdfhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/pedagogyoftheoppressed-chapters_1-3.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/www.structurization.com/criticalpedagogy.htmlhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/www.structurization.com/criticalpedagogy.htmlhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/www.structurization.com/criticalpedagogy.htmlhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/www.structurization.com/criticalpedagogy.htmlhttp://www.markfoster.net/struc/pedagogyoftheoppressed-chapters_1-3.pdf


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In our socially fragmented civilization, diagnostic rates for

Autism are also, reportedly, on the increase. In the online

Autistic movement, libertarianism, as a

path of least

resistance

, is, from my own personal observations, rampant

and widespread. It is, at the same time, a socially alienating

perspective. Autists, like myself, generally struggle with

issues of interpersonal interaction and spirituality or empathy.

Although unity can be beneficial, ideologies of individualism

and libertarianism are spiritually damaging. Thus, the idolatry

of personal liberty, or the deification of the self, is,

deceptively, the enemy of Autists.

In my version of the social model of disability, the Marxian

dialectic (or contradiction) of oppression and other dialectics

and dualisms are resolved through unity and inclusion, not

through identity politics. The Golden Rule, doing unto others

as you would have them do unto you, should, I feel, make any

partisanship by the disabled unnecessary. Once oppression,

injustice, and social inequality are recognized, the community

or society must, as a unified whole, give preference to that

discriminated population until the conditions are remedied.


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The formation of adversarial

“

in-groups

”

and

“

out-groups

”

would, ideally, be prevented.

u·nif·ic [yoo-NIF-ik]adjectiveunifying; uniting: the unific influence of a common language.

Dictionary Definition of Unific. Retrieved on September 26,

2012.

Unity, in diversity, is, as I see it, always preferable over

division. In my opinion, the unities of humanity and all beings

and things are realities. As humans, we are not cats or dogs

or cattle. We are members of the same biological species,

homo sapiens, and members of the same subspecies, homo

sapiens sapiens. Classifying us by race, ethnicity, and

nationality is a human invention. Defining us through our skin

color makes no more scientific sense than distinguishing

between us based upon hair or eye color. Each of these three

traits were evolutionary adaptations. Their variations, based

upon climate, resulted from natural selection.

The variety of inherited qualities comes from strength andweakness of constitution-that is to say, when the two parents are

weak, the children will be weak; if they are strong, the childrenwill be robust. In the same way, purity of blood has a greateffect; for the pure germ is like the superior stock which existsin plants and animals. For example, you see that children born

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from a weak and feeble father and mother will naturally have afeeble constitution and weak nerves; they will be afflicted andwill have neither patience, nor endurance, nor resolution, norperseverance, and will be hasty; for the children inherit theweakness and debility of their parents....

Hence it is evident that inherited character also exists ....ʿAbduʾl-Bahá, Some Answered Questions. Page 213.

However, oppression–based upon disability, race, gender,

ethnicity, sexual orientation, age, and so forth

–

is a disunifying

pattern of exclusion and lack of accommodation. Oppressed

populations are deprived of prestige (social respect), wealth,

privilege (equal opportunity), and power (control over social

policies). Victimization might be a result of oppression, but it

also might not. For instance, some victims of crimes are

simply unfortunate. However, any remedies for oppressive

exclusion must reject violence. We should recognize the

universal web of interdependence which connects us.

Exclusion is then resolved through inclusion or unity.

And the claim of the philosophy of meta-Reality is that allother beings are enfolded within myself, or at least the alethic

truth of all other beings, and I accordingly am enfolded withinall other beings too. So the distinctiveness of beings remains, youare different from me, you are spatio-temporally, karmicallyand constitutively different from me, but you are neverthelessenfolded within me. The fact that all beings are enfolded withinme enables me in principle to discover the alethic truth of those

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beings, such as the molecular structure of a crystal or the natureof gravity or what it is like to be a dragon.Roy Bhaskar, Reality: The Philosophy of meta-Reality, Volume 1,Creativity, Love and Freedom. Thousand Oaks, CA. SagePublications. 2002. Page xviii.

In his new book, Reflections on Meta-Reality (RMR), RoyBhaskar claims to articulate a new philosophy that transcendscritical realism, while preserving its insights. And indeed itproceeds by immanent critique of critical realism, thereby

extending critical realism’s systematic attempt to think being.With the demise of historical socialism and the rise of bourgeois

triumphalism in the late eighties and the nineties, the deficiency,absence or lack Bhaskar has pinpointed in the discourse andpractice of critical realism and the Left in general is thatinsufficient attention is being paid to the spiritual dimension ofhuman life, with the consequence that the Right is hegemonic inthat area. So he self-consciously set out to remedy this lack,

embarking on “the spiritual exposition of being.” ... Its basic line of argument is that a non-dual world or ultimate

zone of being underpins and is co-present in an occluded way inthe dual world of alienation and contradiction in which we live,as a condition of its possibility, and that this requires a newphilosophy of identity for its exposition. Realism about thisworld, about transcendence, thus entails the self-transcendence

of critical realism itself, which is a philosophy of non-identity orduality. Bhaskar calls this non-dual world the cosmic envelope(in which the deepest natures or ground-states of all beings sit

and are connected), describing it also as Bohm’s implicate orderof pure enfolded being, of pure potentiality, of “Platonicanamnesis,” involving “a level of consciousness beyond thoughtitself.” Other key figures ... are generalised co-presence orsynchronicity and the inwardness of being (everything isimplicated or enfolded within everything else); and


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transcendental identification in consciousness between entitiesand beings within the explicated or become dual world weinhabit.Roy Bhaskar, “The Philosophy of Meta-Reality, Part I: Identity,Spirituality, System. Interview by Mervyn Hartwig.” Abstract(excerpt). Retrieved on November 24, 2011.

It seems to me that Roy Bhaskar’s cosmic envelope as the

end objective of emancipatory or self-realized projects is a

pretty universal experience. I might be wrong, but I cannot

conceive, at this moment, of a liberation apart from unity.

Hopefully, others will be drawn to the larger body of Bhaskar’s

work through this simple concept. For me, the cosmic

envelope has provided a way to express, using intuitive and

commonsense language, the transformative experience of

discovering empathy and interconnectedness. As a result, I

have been referring to myself as an emancipated Autist. I

informally define

emancipated Autism

as including individuals

who:

1.

were diagnosed, at sometime over their development,

with an Autistic spectrum disorder.

2.

have discovered unity, empathy, or connectedness

through spiritual experience.

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As I have reflected on the past, my personal emancipation

from Autism began, I feel, in January of 1971. Through my

spiritual mother, Elizabeth Thomas, I began studying the work

of two dear souls, Marian Crist Lippitt and Henry A. Weil. An

immersion in the ideas of these three wonderful Baháʾís

gradually led to the development of

The Unicentric Paradigm

™. Then, in 2010, my spiritual heart was opened by the

intercession of my beloved guardian angel,

Ḥ

a

ḍ

rat Sul

ṭān

Bāhū, a seventeenth-century Punjabī Ṣūfī. My inward,

spiritual encounters with Bāhū, which h

ave been ongoing,

resulted in Heartfulness Inquiry™.

The online community of Autists and the mental health

community have been relatively disconnected. This

unfortunate separation has mostly been a result of the

neurodiversity movement and its focus upon creating a

unique Autistic identity. There are, however, movements

related to Autism and to mental health, which, to some extent,

run parallel to one another. Descriptions of a number of them

are provided on my Brief Outlines of Liberation Movements

page. Bridging the gap between these two, and other,

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disability communities, I developed The Emancipated Autism

Project.

The recovery movement, as a caricature of the Empowerment

Model, turns ordinary human struggles into fictional

pathologies, and it transforms personal life stories into novels

of recovery from nonscientific diseases. The wide diversity of

human experience, such as procrastination, is medicalized.

Although I continue to differ with many of the core

philosophical assumptions commonly held within the recovery

movement, such as attributing powerlessness to an absence

of

will power

and the

“

diseasing

”

of life, there is, as far as I

know, no specific Autistic recovery group.

Therefore, becoming emancipated through the cosmic

envelope is not, in my opinion, the same as recovery or

finding a cure. Neurologically, I am presumably still an Autist.

Many of my personality characteristics are Autistic, including

my daily rituals and delight in routine. However, through

prayer and meditation, I have discovered, or perhaps

uncovered is more accurate, the attributes of a multi-layered

enfoldment of unities as the fabric of existence. Fairly

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regularly, my level of empathy has continued to develop.

Perhaps, in time, medicine will become more effective in

addressing this issue, too.

Furthermore, any deficiencies in individual attributes should,

in my view, be worked on, not celebrated. The concept of

Autistic pride is frequently associated with preferences for

Autist-first, over person-first, language. Similar views of

“

pride

”

are found in several disability communities and elsewhere,

as in national pride and within the Deaf and other

marginalized communities. I have often been proud of other

Autists, but, to me, humility is preferable. Although Autism is a

part of me, it was not a personal accomplishment. I am,

however, thankful to my Gracious Lord for assisting me to

survive the disorder.

In the Social Model, the term, “disability” refers to social

oppression

or discrimination based upon social

disadvantages. Disability is not the same as simple human

differences

. In other words, once the oppression is removed,

the disability is eliminated. In Unities of All Things, disability is

also defined as oppression. However, the medical oppression


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which results from having a number of usually undesirable

neurological traits, especially the difficulties with processing

empathy, is incorporated, as well.

In my view, identity politics, a term for movements supporting

the partisan interests of individuals with particular disabilities,

should be discarded. I replace it with an awareness of the

unity of humanity. If we share, together, the physical

attributes, the qualities, of the essence of humanity, we are

literally, not just figuratively or metaphorically, related to one

another.

For example, our global community might, working in unity,

develop better treatments, perhaps even targeted cures, for

Autism. With a dear Autistic father, I should always have

known, better than most people, the importance of

discovering scientific medical cures. Second, we Autists, as

uncommonly odd individuals, are often bullied. Due to a lack

of social skills, we also have much higher-than-average

unemployment rates. Cooperatively protecting Autists from all

forms of oppression and discrimination, is, I feel, crucial.


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Every human being has the right to be treated with dignity and

respect.

The unity, or essence, of humanity is not, to my

understanding, merely an abstract concept. As we discover

and acquire the magnetic attributes of human unity, that unity

can be practiced in our daily lives. Decisions will be made

consultatively or selflessly. Diversity, on the other hand, is a

given. Each of us is an individual soul. We have particular

capacities which can be developed throughout our lives.

However, diversity by itself, like Autistic identity politics, can

easily become a trap. If we focus upon the diversity, and

neglect the unitying essence, societies, communities, and

hearts may begin to fall apart.

The Emancipated Autism Project

, which was discussed

earlier in the chapter, is a social and economic development

(SED) activity, not a formal association. Rather than criticizing

Autism-related organizations by name, I prefer to simply

mention the ones I feel to be most beneficial. Although the

entire Autism issue has unfortunately become highly

politicized, both the Autism Society and The Global and

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Regional Asperger Syndrome Partnership (GRASP

™

) have

managed to be inclusive on many issues. The focus of both

groups is upon helping Autists, not upon partisan agendas or

“

us versus them.

”

I am not making a direct comparison between Autism, as a

developmental disability, and homosexuality, as a sexual

orientation. Nevertheless, I think that a similar principle of

nature and nurture

is involved. The concept of

sexual

orientation

,

sexual preference

, or

sexual identity

is new. Just

as heterosexuality was a portmanteau, or coined expression,

inspired by a greater social acceptance of Lesbian and Gay

rights, homosexuality itself was, until the 1980s or later,

generally regarded as a behavior, not as an identity. In a

historical context, Baháʾuʾlláh would not, in my view, have

been addressing the issue of orientation but behavior:

...We shrink, for very shame, from treating of the subject ofboys [ġilmān, servant boys or pages]. Fear ye the Merciful, Opeoples of the world! Commit not that which is forbidden you in

Our Holy Tablet, and be not of those who rove distractedly inthe wilderness of their desires.

Baháʾuʾlláh, The Kitáb-i-Aqdas. Page 58.The word translated here as “boys” has, in this context, in the

Arabic original, the implication of paederasty. Shoghi Effendi

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has interpreted this reference as a prohibition on all homosexualrelations.

The Baháʾí teachings on sexual morality centre on marriageand the family as the bedrock of the whole structure of humansociety and are designed to protect and strengthen that divine

institution. Baháʾí law thus restricts permissible sexualintercourse to that between a man and the woman to whom he ismarried.Note by the Universal House of Justice in Baháʾuʾlláh, The Kitáb-i-Aqdas. Page 223.

Similarly, these next two statements were made before

homosexuality was commonly perceived, by the general

public, as an identity. In my opinion, the

“

best medical

assistance” refers to sexual conduct. The highly controversial,

unethical, oppressive, pseudoscientific, and empirically

unsupported conversion or reparative therapy is not

advocated. That is to say, issues of Lesbian and Gay sexual

identity and attraction are not, to my understanding,

addressed by Baháʾí Law:

A number of sexual problems such as homosexuality and

transsexuality can well have medical aspects, and in such cases

recourse should certainly be had to the best medical assistance.But it is clear from the teaching of Baháʾuʾlláh thathomosexuality is not a condition to which a person should be

reconciled, but is a distortion of his or her nature which shouldbe controlled and overcome. This may require a hard struggle,but so also can be the struggle of a heterosexual person to

http://bahaistudies.net/baha/The_Kitab-i-Aqdas.pdfhttp://bahaistudies.net/baha/The_Kitab-i-Aqdas.pdfhttp://bahaistudies.net/baha/The_Kitab-i-Aqdas.pdfhttp://bahaistudies.net/baha/The_Kitab-i-Aqdas.pdfhttp://bahaistudies.net/baha/The_Kitab-i-Aqdas.pdfhttp://bahaistudies.net/baha/The_Kitab-i-Aqdas.pdf


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control his or her desires. The exercise of self-control in this, asin so very many other aspects of life, has a beneficial effect onthe progress of the soul. It should, moreover, be borne in mindthat although to be married is highly desirable, and Baháʾuʾlláhhas strongly recommended it, it is not the central purpose of life.If a person has to wait a considerable period before finding aspouse, or if ultimately, he or she must remain single, it does notmean that he or she is thereby unable to fulfil his or her life’spurpose.From a letter, dated January 12, 1985, written on behalf of the

Universal House of Justice to an individual Baháʾí, Lights of

Guidance: A Baháʾí Reference File. Number 1222.No matter how devoted and fine the love may be betweenpeople of the same sex, to let it find expression in sexual acts iswrong. To say that it is ideal is no excuse. Immorality of everysort is really forbidden by Baháʾuʾlláh, and homosexualrelationships he looks upon as such, besides being against

nature.To be afflicted this way is a great burden to a conscientious

soul. But through the advice and help of doctors, through astrong and determined effort, and through prayer, a soul canovercome this handicap.

God judges each soul on its own merits. The Guardian cannottell you what the attitude of God would be towards a person

who lives a good life in most ways, but not in this way. All hecan tell you is that it is forbidden by Baháʾuʾlláh, and that oneso afflicted should struggle and struggle again to overcome it.

We must be hopeful of God's Mercy but not impose upon it.From a letter, dated March 26, 1950, written on behalf of

Shoghi Effendi to an individual Baháʾí, Lights of Guidance: A

Baháʾí Reference File. Number 1223.I believe I owe the gay community an apology for my study

making unproven claims of the efficacy of reparative therapy. I

http://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/compilations/hornby_lights_guidance.pdf


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also apologize to any gay person who wasted time and energyundergoing some form of reparative therapy because theybelieved that I had proven that reparative therapy works withsome “highly motivated” individuals. Robert L. Spitzer. M.D., Robert L. Spitzer’s Letter to Ken Zucker, M.D.. Retrieved on June 29, 2013.

My personal view is that adults, of whatever gender and

number, should be legally entitled to a civil union. Marriage,

as I see it, should be privatized. If people with a civil union

wish to represent themselves as being married, that is their

own business. Where appropriate, issues of marriage can be

addressed by religious organizations, including any

appropriate wedding ceremonies. Although the Baháʾí laws

are intended, ultimately, for all humanity, only Baháʾís are

obligated to follow them. In my opinion, that basic principle

applies to homosexuality just as it relates to Obligatory Prayer

and Fasting. I am not, therefore, an activist against same-sex

marriage.

Baháʾí teachings on sexual morality centre on marriage and

the family as the bedrock of the whole structure of humansociety and are designed to protect and strengthen that divineinstitution. Thus Baháʾí law restricts permissible sexualintercourse to that between a man and the woman to whom he ismarried.

http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/Spitzer_letter_to_Zucker.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/Spitzer_letter_to_Zucker.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/Spitzer_letter_to_Zucker.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/Spitzer_letter_to_Zucker.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/Spitzer_letter_to_Zucker.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/Spitzer_letter_to_Zucker.pdf


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is my vacation. Although I interact with others at work, by

telephone, over the Internet, and in other limited contexts, I

mostly engage in solitary actitivies, especially communion

with God.

I am in good company. Meditations, heart-centered and

otherwise, have positively affected the lives of these Autists,

too:

Arman Khodaei is connected with Irmansyah Effendi’s

Open Heart Meditation. See also his website.

Eric Chen developed DIY, or do-it-yourself, Autism

Therapy. He has written about his own experiences in

Buddhism.

Chris Mitchell is associated with Samathā Buddhist

Meditation.

Taylor Selseth meditates in the Vipassanā Buddhist

tradition.

Ethan Davidson, a Vipassanā Buddhist, has participated

with the Insight Meditation Society and the Triratna

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPGX8G-UvsUhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPGX8G-UvsUhttp://openheartworkshops.com/http://www.empoweringautism.com/http://www.empoweringautism.com/http://www.empoweringautism.com/http://eric.rainbowhuman.com/http://iautistic.com/DIY-autism-therapy.phphttp://iautistic.com/DIY-autism-therapy.phphttp://iautistic.com/DIY-autism-therapy.phphttp://iautistic.com/autism-book-mirror-mind.phphttp://iautistic.com/autism-book-mirror-mind.phphttp://iautistic.com/autism-book-mirror-mind.phphttp://www.chrismitchell.org.uk/http://www.chrismitchell.org.uk/http://www.samatha.org/http://www.samatha.org/http://www.samatha.org/http://www.samatha.org/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/my_autistic_life.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/my_autistic_life.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/vipassana3.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/vipassana3.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/vipassana3.pdfhttps://plus.google.com/105417129530858663654/postshttps://plus.google.com/105417129530858663654/postshttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yvuylRojMghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yvuylRojMghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yvuylRojMghttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/insightmedsoc.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/insightmedsoc.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/insightmedsoc.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/becomingamitra.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/becomingamitra.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/becomingamitra.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/insightmedsoc.pdfhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yvuylRojMghttps://plus.google.com/105417129530858663654/postshttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/vipassana3.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/my_autistic_life.pdfhttp://www.samatha.org/http://www.samatha.org/http://www.chrismitchell.org.uk/http://iautistic.com/autism-book-mirror-mind.phphttp://iautistic.com/DIY-autism-therapy.phphttp://eric.rainbowhuman.com/http://www.empoweringautism.com/http://openheartworkshops.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hPGX8G-UvsU


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Buddhist Community (formerly called, Friends of the

Western Buddhist Order).

Paul Wady, a Buddhist, is The National Autistic Society

meditation teacher.

Anne-Laure Davin is a Zen Buddhist.

Garry Burge practices Buddhist meditation. (See

YouTube videos one and two.)

Katharine Annear practices mindfulness. She was

inspired by Buddhism and by Eckart Tolle’s book, The

Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment

.

Charles Burns gives workshops in Shintaido (Japanese

for

“

new body way

”

), a moving meditation.

Sarah Madeleine received the “knowledge,” as a premī

(Sanskrit for

“

devotee

”

), from

Prem Rawāt

. He is more

popularly known as Gurū Mahārāji.

“Lexx” has an ecclectic spirituality. He is involved (and

chants) with the International Society for Krishna

Consciousness, and he considers K

ṛṣṇā

(Sanskrit for

“

http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/becomingamitra.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/6realms.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/6realms.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/6realms.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/paul_wady.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/paul_wady.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/nationalautisticsociety.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/nationalautisticsociety.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/nationalautisticsociety.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/neurelitism/library/autism-zen.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/neurelitism/library/autism-zen.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/zen_china_cyberspace.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/zen_china_cyberspace.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/zen_china_cyberspace.pdfhttp://www.garryburge.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdI5Hk2b9xAhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdI5Hk2b9xAhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzg_hyV7frohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzg_hyV7frohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzg_hyV7frohttp://www.autap.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHGdRyIOLT4http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHGdRyIOLT4http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHGdRyIOLT4http://books.google.com/books?id=Bto8PqiEnzIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Power+of+Now:+A+Guide+to+Spiritual+Enlightenment&hl=en&src=bmrr&ei=V4oPTdu4OafenQeAiuiSDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=falsehttp://books.google.com/books?id=Bto8PqiEnzIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Power+of+Now:+A+Guide+to+Spiritual+Enlightenment&hl=en&src=bmrr&ei=V4oPTdu4OafenQeAiuiSDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=falsehttp://books.google.com/books?id=Bto8PqiEnzIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Power+of+Now:+A+Guide+to+Spiritual+Enlightenment&hl=en&src=bmrr&ei=V4oPTdu4OafenQeAiuiSDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=falsehttp://books.google.com/books?id=Bto8PqiEnzIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Power+of+Now:+A+Guide+to+Spiritual+Enlightenment&hl=en&src=bmrr&ei=V4oPTdu4OafenQeAiuiSDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=falsehttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/shintaido.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/shintaido.pdfhttp://www.shintaido.org/http://www.shintaido.org/http://www.shintaido.org/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/sarah_madeleine.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/maharaji2.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/maharaji2.pdfhttp://www.maharaji.net/http://www.maharaji.net/http://www.maharaji.net/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/lexx.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/rama_and_krishna.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/rama_and_krishna.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/rama_and_krishna.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/rama_and_krishna.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/radha-krishna2.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/radha-krishna2.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/radha-krishna2.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/radha-krishna2.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/radha-krishna2.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/rama_and_krishna.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/rama_and_krishna.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/lexx.pdfhttp://www.maharaji.net/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/maharaji2.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/sarah_madeleine.pdfhttp://www.shintaido.org/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/shintaido.pdfhttp://books.google.com/books?id=Bto8PqiEnzIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Power+of+Now:+A+Guide+to+Spiritual+Enlightenment&hl=en&src=bmrr&ei=V4oPTdu4OafenQeAiuiSDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=falsehttp://books.google.com/books?id=Bto8PqiEnzIC&printsec=frontcover&dq=The+Power+of+Now:+A+Guide+to+Spiritual+Enlightenment&hl=en&src=bmrr&ei=V4oPTdu4OafenQeAiuiSDg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CCcQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=falsehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GHGdRyIOLT4http://www.autap.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzg_hyV7frohttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdI5Hk2b9xAhttp://www.garryburge.com/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/zen_china_cyberspace.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/neurelitism/library/autism-zen.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/nationalautisticsociety.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/paul_wady.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/6realms.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/6realms.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/becomingamitra.pdf


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dark blue one

”

) to be his God and

Rādhā

(Sanskrit for

“

prosperity” or “success”), Kṛṣṇā’s beloved, to be his

Goddess. However, he is also a Neopagan (YouTube

channel).

Pulitzer Prize-winning Tim Page was initiated into the

Transcendental Meditation

®

of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

(Mahariṣi Maheśa Yogī).

My dear friend, Rachael, finds peace and relaxation

through Haṭha Yoga. You may also visit her YouTube

channel.

Kenneth Christensen uses both yoga meditation and

isolation tanks.

Abigail “Abifae” Iubhar, whose meditation incorporates

yoga and dance, made the fascinating observation that

Autistic self-stimulation through repetitive body

movement (

“

stimming

”

or, in psychiatry, motor

stereotypy), flapping (stimming with the hands), and

pacing are types of kinetic meditation.

http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/radha-krishna.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/radha-krishna.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/radha-krishna.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/neopaganism.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/neopaganism.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/neopaganism.pdfhttps://www.youtube.com/user/lexxintegrahttps://www.youtube.com/user/lexxintegrahttp://www.pulitzer.org/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/tim_page.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/tim_page.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/tim_page.pdfhttp://www.tm.org/http://allpoetry.com/jumpingbeanbear25http://allpoetry.com/jumpingbeanbear25http://www.youtube.com/user/kiddlyjesus3000http://www.youtube.com/user/kiddlyjesus3000http://www.youtube.com/user/kiddlyjesus3000http://www.youtube.com/user/kiddlyjesus3000http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKRwRVrrRyUhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKRwRVrrRyUhttp://www.elfwood.com/~abifaehttp://www.elfwood.com/~abifaehttp://www.elfwood.com/~abifaehttp://www.elfwood.com/~abifaehttp://www.elfwood.com/~abifaehttp://www.elfwood.com/~abifaehttp://autism-rocks.blogspot.com/2009/09/meditation.htmlhttp://autism-rocks.blogspot.com/2009/09/meditation.htmlhttp://autism-rocks.blogspot.com/2009/09/meditation.htmlhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/stimming.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/stimming.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/stereotypy.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/stereotypy.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/stereotypy.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/stereotypy.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/stereotypy.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/stimming.pdfhttp://autism-rocks.blogspot.com/2009/09/meditation.htmlhttp://www.elfwood.com/~abifaehttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EKRwRVrrRyUhttp://www.youtube.com/user/kiddlyjesus3000http://www.youtube.com/user/kiddlyjesus3000http://allpoetry.com/jumpingbeanbear25http://www.tm.org/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/tim_page.pdfhttp://www.pulitzer.org/https://www.youtube.com/user/lexxintegrahttps://www.youtube.com/user/lexxintegrahttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/neopaganism.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/radha-krishna.pdf


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“Jenwytch” is involved in Witchcraft and Paganism. She

has participated in a meditation called, The New Reality

Transmission.

Caroline Hearst gave a presentation on meditation and

cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT).

“Moog,” a Buddhist meditator from the United Kingdom,

provides simple meditation instructions (toward the

bottom) and a podcast on meditation.

Ryan Michael Galloway uses music as a form of

meditation. You can also visit his website.

Dovid Krafchow, the Jewish Bohemian, has some

original reflections and videos on the Cabalah (Hebrew,

Qabbālāh, receiving) and other subjects.

Silently repeating the remembrance during my daily routines,

as an Autist, keeps me spiritually centered. With others,

practicing the remembrance during “stims” (repetitive body

movements) may have a similar result. In fact,

“

getting tired

”

of sounds or songs I like has never made any sense to me.

The redundancy in itself is comforting and quieting. I also find

http://theotherside.wordpress.com/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/new_reality_transmission.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/new_reality_transmission.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/new_reality_transmission.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/caroline_hearst.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/caroline_hearst.pdfhttp://recollection.posterous.com/http://recollection.posterous.com/http://cdn.wrongplanet.net/modules.php?name=blogview&user=Mooghttp://cdn.wrongplanet.net/modules.php?name=blogview&user=Mooghttp://cdn.wrongplanet.net/modules.php?name=blogview&user=Mooghttp://recollection.posterous.com/my-first-podcast-15-minute-meditationhttp://recollection.posterous.com/my-first-podcast-15-minute-meditationhttp://recollection.posterous.com/my-first-podcast-15-minute-meditationhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auj8kxZt810http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auj8kxZt810http://www.ryanrocks.com/http://www.ryanrocks.com/http://www.ryanrocks.com/http://www.jewishbohemian.com/http://www.jewishbohemian.com/https://www.youtube.com/user/JewishBohemian/videoshttps://www.youtube.com/user/JewishBohemian/videoshttp://www.2012cabala.com/http://www.2012cabala.com/http://www.2012cabala.com/http://www.2012cabala.com/https://www.youtube.com/user/JewishBohemian/videoshttp://www.jewishbohemian.com/http://www.ryanrocks.com/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=auj8kxZt810http://recollection.posterous.com/my-first-podcast-15-minute-meditationhttp://cdn.wrongplanet.net/modules.php?name=blogview&user=Mooghttp://recollection.posterous.com/http://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/caroline_hearst.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/new_reality_transmission.pdfhttp://www.bahaistudies.net/asma/new_reality_transmission.pdfhttp://theotherside.wordpress.com/


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it helpful to reflect on subjects such as, Autistic self-advocacy,

civil and other human rights, personal behavior, and,

especially, empathy.

Some Autists may also attempt to compensate for their social

challenges by relating to people and ideas more intellectually

than emotionally. At least for me, a college professor, heart-

centered devotional meditation is correcting that imbalance.

Although empathy, which is one of the attributes of the unity

or essence of humanity, might not be innate or natural within

many Autists and others, it can, based on scientific research,

often be acquired. Evidence of a relationship between

empathy and meditation may be of special interest to many

individuals on the Autism spectrum:

This might already be obvious to enlightened souls, butresearchers are discovering that meditation may permanentlychange the physical structure of the brain. Neural circuitslinked to focus, happiness and empathy may be strengthenedthrough long-term meditation, effectively rewiring the brain

and “lighting up” certain sections with a life-long capability for

stronger activity in those regions, scans have indicated.Mary Papenfuss, Newser staff, “Om My! Meditation ChangesBrain Structure.” Oct 27, 2010.

Autism is a chronic neurodevelopmental disorder of unknowncause that affects approximately 1-3 percent of children and

four times more boys than girls. Its prevalence is global and its

http://www.amazon.com/Climb-Against-Odds-Celebrating-Survival/dp/0811834816/http://www.amazon.com/Climb-Against-Odds-Celebr

Documents

Discovering Emancipated Autism